1.Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to rain gutter devices and more specifically it relates to a rain gutter cleaning assembly for removing leaves and other debris from a conventional rain gutter thereby allowing unobstructed drainage of water within the rain gutter.
It is common for rain gutters and downspouts to become obstructed from debris such as leaves and dirt. To remove the debris, the user must either stand upon the roof or a ladder to clean out the debris with a garden hose or broom. This is extremely dangerous and sometimes leads to serious injury to the individual while attempting to clean the obstructed gutter or downspout. In addition, while attempting to clean the gutter with water, often times the wet leaves will accumulate within the downspout which is even harder to clean. Therefore, there is a need for a rain gutter cleaning system that does not require the user to have to manually clean leaves and other debris from within the gutter.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Rain gutter devices have been in use for years. Typically, rain gutter devices comprise a gutter attached to the edge of a roof for collecting rain water runoff from the roof. A downspout is connected to the bottom surface of the gutter generally at a lower end of the gutter for receiving the accumulated water.
Unfortunately, debris such as leaves and dirt can become accumulated within the gutter and the downspout thereby obstructing free flowing of the accumulated water. Since the water is unable to exit through the downspout, it overflows the edges of the gutter thereby penetrating the building structure thereby causing severe damage such as rotting to the building structure.
Examples of rain gutter cleaning devices include U.S. Pat. No. 5,709,051 to Mazziotti; U.S. Pat. No. 5,526,612 to Wade; U.S. Pat. No. 5,678,360 to Fort et al; U.S. Pat. No. 5,852,900 to Edelman; U.S. Pat. No. 5,791,091 to Barbera; U.S. Pat. No. 5,802,776 to Murray which are all illustrative of such prior art.
Mazziotti (U.S. Pat. No. 5,709,051) discloses a debris removal device for rain gutter downspouts. Mazziotti teaches an elongate tubular housing open on both ends and having an unobstructed third opening formed transversely through the tubular wall between the ends, and a partition having apertures formed therein extends within the tubular housings at an inclination.
Wade (U.S. Pat. No. 5,526,612) discloses a leaf free gutter and downpipe rain head. Wade teaches a box compartment having an upwardly facing included inlet over which a primary screen is located and a lower outlet connected to a downpipe through which the filtered water passes.
Fort et al (U.S. Pat. No. 5,678,360) discloses a gutter liquid separator. Fort teaches a debris discharge outlet and a liquid separator wherein the debris discharge includes a flow surface and an inner and outer wall.
While these devices may be suitable for the particular purpose to which they address, they are not as suitable for removing leaves and other debris from a conventional rain gutter thereby allowing unobstructed drainage of water within the rain gutter.
In these respects, the rain gutter cleaning assembly according to the present invention substantially departs from the conventional concepts and designs of the prior art, and in so doing provides an apparatus primarily developed for the purpose of removing leaves and other debris from a conventional rain gutter thereby allowing unobstructed drainage of water within the rain gutter.